


The Boy in the Kitchen

by taeyoooooong



Series: One Year Anniversary Special: Roses and Strawberry Cake [1]
Category: NCT (Band)
Genre: Fluff, Getting Together, M/M, Making Out, Na Jaemin is a Good Friend, Prince Lee Jeno, Rewrite, hehe more plot was added, it's happy!, just a little, kitchen boy na jaemin, lol making out in the royal gardens, nomin are so cute, royal au, with some angst, wow i never realized how horrible my writing was at the beginning lol
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-09-20
Updated: 2019-09-20
Packaged: 2020-10-24 10:07:22
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,080
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20704202
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/taeyoooooong/pseuds/taeyoooooong
Summary: Jeno prefers chocolate cake, really.It's unfortunate how he keeps stuffing himself with strawberry.The things he would do for the boy in the kitchen who made them.





	The Boy in the Kitchen

**Author's Note:**

> hey guys! it's me, your shitty writer taeyoooooong. this is the beginning of a little special event I have planned. it's kind of a rewrite series...but not. if any of you were here in the beginning, my first ever successful work that really piqued my interest in writing was titled 'The Boy in the Kitchen'. i wanted to do this because i wanted to see how i improved, and i wanted you guys to see how i improved. of course, i will also be rewriting the other work in the series, and on the one year anniversary of this account, i will post the third part that was never published. enjoy!

“Prince Jeno, your parents would like to see you.”

Jeno set down his pen and looked up to see who called him. “Renjun, didn’t I tell you to call me Jeno?”

Renjun looked down, embarrassed. “Sorry. But still, Jeno, your parents want to see you.”

Jeno groaned, shoving all of his things aside and sliding off his bed. Dragging his feet all the way to the throne room, he thought about all the possible things his parents wanted to see him for. Was it for the ink he spilled in the study? Or was it for the two cupcakes he stole? Suddenly, the idea of his marriage came to him. _Oh, it was definitely about the marriage. _He stopped in his place, and sighed. He started walking even slower, hoping that maybe his parents would forget by the time he reached them.

They did not forget.

“Father. Mother.” Jeno bowed his head, and waited for them to start their rambling on all the girls that he could marry. Unfortunately for him and them, he did not swing that way.

“Jeno, you’re going to turn eighteen in a year. I think it’s time you start looking for a wife, before it’s too late.”

Jeno raised an eyebrow. “I’m sure Taeyong and Doyoung don’t have wives yet. Last time I checked, they were way past eighteen.”

“They’re in the military. Completely different story.”

“Anyways, your father and I have done some looking, and we think many princesses would suit your tastes. Remember Princess Yerim? I think you two would be lovely together. She’s very pretty.”

“Oh, and Princess Somi! She’s good at cooking and sewing. Very ideal.”

“Er…Mother, Father. Forgive me, but I have to go. I have an assignment for the tutor that I didn’t complete.” He bowed and ran out of the throne room. He hated the way they would talk about the princesses. They talked about them like objects, and really, Somi and Yerim deserved so much better. They were actually nice. And, it just wasn’t one of those days where he wanted to listen to his parents go on and on about women. As he rounded the corner, he saw the royal tutor. He wasn’t making up his excuse.

In a fit of panic, Jeno ducked into the nearest room or stairwell and promptly knocked into someone.

“Argh! Are you kidding me, I’m—oh! Prince Jeno, sorry about that.”

“No, it’s my fault. Here, let me help.” Jeno bent down to help the boy pick up all the fruits that he dropped, but the boy stopped him.

“It’s fine. Plus, if your parents get wind that you helped a kitchen boy, they’ll fire me. I’ll pick them up, and you just get on your way.”

Jeno hesitated, and saw the tutor by his room, no doubt looking for him. “Okay, I’m going to be honest. The royal tutor is looking for me and an assignment that I did not do. Please let me come with you.”

The boy blinked, and started laughing. “Alright. The kitchen is this way.”

Jeno followed him down the stairs and into the stuffy kitchen. “It’s hot.”

“Yeah, it’s usually like this. You know, the ovens are always on, and so many people are down here.”

The boy set down his basket, and brushed himself off, holding out a hand to Jeno. “I’m Na Jaemin.”

Jeno shook his hand. “I’m—”

“Yeah, yeah. I know who you are.”

Jeno cracked a smile. “Just call me Jeno.”

“Okay, Jeno. It’s been pretty lonely down here, so I hope we can be friends. Now, follow me.”

Jeno followed him around the kitchen as he cooked. He also got to know him along the way. He found out that Jaemin was only a couple months younger than him. He only had his mom, who he sent money home to every month. Jaemin also had many friends around the castle (including Renjun), but he just didn’t see them very often since they worked above the kitchen.

Honestly, Jeno kind of liked him.

“So, what’s your deal?”

Jeno blinked. “Huh?”

“Like, what do you do besides all your princely duties?”

Jeno shrugged. “I don’t really do much. You know, being a prince is much less glorifying than it seems. There are galas, balls—I don’t really know the difference—weddings, coronations, and other stuff like learning how to rule a country and politics. That’s all the princely stuff I do, and it sucks. And the rest of my time here is spent studying, and goofing off.”

“Sounds better than what I do down here for sure. I cook literally all day long. Literally, who the fuck eats so much?”

“My father.”

Jaemin snorted, and kept on cutting carrots. Jeno leaned against the counter and just watched him. He was about to swipe a carrot off the cutting board when he realized the time.

“Oh shit, I have to go. It’s almost dinner and Renjun is going to come looking for me. It was great getting to know you.”

Jaemin smiled warmly. “It was fun today. I hope to see you soon.”

Jaemin waved at him as he exited the kitchen and snuck into his room. Jeno ignored the butterflies in his stomach and figured he was just hungry. 

* * *

Over the next few weeks, Jeno continued to sneak down into the kitchens to talk with Jaemin. He’d even picked up a bit of cooking and baking skills.

Turns out, Jeno had been missing out on a lot. He actually enjoyed being in the busy but somehow warm and calming atmosphere of the kitchens.

And having Jaemin around was an added bonus. Jaemin had quickly turned into one of Jeno’s closest friends. It was nice having someone other than Renjun and Jisung to talk to, because Renjun was probably still uncomfortable treating Jeno like a friend instead of a prince. And Jisung, he saw too much of that boy.

Jeno and Jaemin also shared a lot more in common than they thought.

_“Jaem, oh my gosh. Did you hear that Prince Hyunjin got engaged?”_

_Jaemin turned to him, and gaped. “What?”_

_“I know right?”_

_The pair went silent, before speaking up at the same time. “Darn, he was cute.”_

_They both looked at each other, eyes blown wide and hands covering their mouths._

_“You…?”_

_“You too?”_

_Jeno nodded hesitantly and Jaemin sighed in relief. “Man, for a moment I thought I just ruined my entire life.”_

_“Honestly, me too.”_

_“Good to know I’m not the only one here. I knew my gaydar wasn’t wrong.”_

_Jeno gasped indignantly. “Excuse me? You never told me you knew!”_

_“Hm. I thought you’d tell me when you were ready.”_

_“That’s fair. Okay, anyways, now that you know, let me tell you a secret. I had my gay awakening because of Hyunjin.”_

_Jaemin laughed and stumbled, nearly falling over. “Oh my gosh…me too!”_

Jeno liked to think that that was a bonding moment that just signified that they were now together for life. When he voiced it to Jaemin, Jaemin teased him.

But really, he thought of it like that too.

* * *

Jeno sighed, plopping down on the grass next to Jaemin in the castle gardens.

“What’s up with you?”

“Just prince stuff. You know…”

Jaemin patted his shoulder sympathetically. “Ah. I see.”

Jeno rested his head on Jaemin’s shoulder, and Jaemin shifted closer to him. “You know, sometimes I wish that I was normal.”

“Really?”

“Yeah. I imagine it must be a whole lot better than this.”

“At least you’re not poor.”

Jeno shook his head, hair tickling Jaemin’s neck. “I’d rather be poor then. I mean, I get I’m super privileged…but I can’t help but think that life could be so much better than this.”

“It could.”

“Ugh, I sound like a brat.”

“No, I don’t think so. I mean, maybe to other people that don’t know you, but I know you. I can’t help but say this is partially your parents’ fault. No offense, Jeno, but they’re really pushing you here. Don’t think I haven’t noticed your eyebags. What have you been doing?”

“I’ve just been stressing out over the whole entire marriage thing. And then the lessons they put me through. Politics, war strategies, how to rule a kingdom, and then I have my regular school lessons. All day long, and I’m lucky if I get five minutes in between these couple hour long sessions to eat or drink. It doesn’t seem like a lot, but gosh, Jaemin, I’m so tired.”

Jeno’s voice cracked, and Jaemin pulled away to grab Jeno’s hand reassuringly. “Aw, hey. Don’t cry.”

At Jaemin’s words and his gentle smile, Jeno only let the tears fall harder. “Jaemin, I’m so tired. My head hurts and it sometimes gets hard to breathe, and god—I don’t know how to fix it.”

“Hey, breathe. Come on, deep breaths with me.”

Jeno followed Jaemin’s pattern, and eventually, his breaths started to even out. Jaemin ran a hand through Jeno’s hair, and wiped his tears.

“Okay. I’m pretty sure that when we both bonded over our little crush on Hyunjin a while back, we became tied together for life. And that means, you tell me when you feel like this. ‘Cuz I’m here to help. Always.”

Jeno choked out an ‘okay’, and looked away from Jaemin, probably in attempt to hide his face. He was still crying.

“Oh, for fucks sake.”

Jaemin threw himself into Jeno’s arms, toppling them over onto the grass. Jaemin wrapped his arms tightly around Jeno, and Jeno held him back tighter.

“I got you.”

Jeno sniffed, and buried his face into Jaemin’s shoulder.

“Yeah, I got you.”

* * *

“Jeno!”

Jeno chuckled, knowing that it was Jaemin calling out for him. He probably wanted him to hold something while he baked or cooked. “Yeah?”

“Come over here!”

Jeno jogged over to him, and saw him holding a brightly frosted cake. “Happy birthday!”

Jeno smiled, and shook his head. “Another cake? My parents already ordered at least ten cakes for the banquet tonight.”

Jaemin lightly punched his shoulder. “You could at least say thank you. I snuck out extra ingredients to make this.”

“Alright, thank you. I appreciate it. What flavor?”

“Strawberry. I know you like chocolate better, but it was the best I could do.”

Jeno waved him off. “If it’s from you, I love it already. Don’t worry about it.”

He meant it; Jaemin could’ve given him a crumb, and Jeno probably would’ve said the same. Before Jeno could speak again, Jaemin grabbed him hand and dragged him out back into the royal gardens.

Jaemin shoved the cake into Jeno’s hands. “Eat.”

Jeno rolled his eyes as he sat down on a grassy hill, and beckoned Jaemin to sit down with him. The two of them ate the cake in silence.

“How is it?” Jaemin turned expectantly to him.

“Absolutely horrible. Hate it.”

Jaemin shot him a glare and turned away from him. Jeno laughed and wiped a piece of frosting on his cheek. “I’m kidding. It tastes great, like always.”

Jaemin huffed, still not noticing the frosting on his face. “I hate you.”

“Hm, really?”

“Yeah.”

Jeno gently grabbed his chin and tilted his face back towards him, wiping off the frosting with his thumb and licking it off. “It is really good though.”

“Glad you enjoy it.” Jaemin gave him a small smile, and ate another piece of cake.

“Are you excited for the banquet tonight?”

Jeno frowned. “Not really. I heard that there were a lot of princesses coming, and no doubt my parents will force me to talk to them and see which one I want to marry.”

Jaemin looked at him with pity in his eyes. “Sorry about that.”

“Don’t feel bad.”

“I mean, if it makes you feel better, I was forcefully engaged once. It was terrible. They treated me like trash…telling me I was too poor and stuff. I had enough and left, and I got a job here. Honestly, I don’t know how this is supposed to make you feel better, but I’m trying to relate here.”

“They sound like an asshole.”

“It’s because they were. Enough about me, though. Why do they want you to marry so bad?”

“Apparently, if I marry too late, I’ll be too ugly and no one will ever love me.”

Jeno raised the pitch of his voice to mock his mother, making Jaemin shove him lightly. When they settled down, Jaemin kept looking at him and looking away.

“What?”

Jaemin turned red. “I…it’s nothing.”

“Tch. Spit it out.”

Jaemin muttered something under his breath and turned his face away from Jeno.

“Jaemin, come on.”

“Fine. I said, I think you’d always be handsome. Happy?”

Despite his tone, Jaemin was bright red and avoiding Jeno’s gaze. Jeno shyly smiled back, and turned back to looking at the sky. It was a while before Jaemin spoke up again.

“I…should get going. I probably have to help with the banquet.”

“Yeah. I’ll see you later, Jaem.”

Jaemin softly grinned back, and stood up and started to dust himself off. Jeno closed his eyes, and sat back to enjoy the afternoon sun. Then, he heard Jaemin squat down, and before he knew it, he felt a pair of lips on his cheek. His eyes flew open, and he saw Jaemin’s laughing face.

“Happy birthday!” Jaemin winked, and jogged back into the kitchen. He left Jeno a blushing mess with frosting on his cheek, and a realization.

He liked the boy in the kitchen.

* * *

“Jisung, I have nothing to wear!”

“You’re a prince. You probably have like, three rooms for your clothes. Now close your eyes so I can do your makeup.”

“But I have—”

“Just let me finish, and then I’ll help you with your clothes.” Jisung smacked his shoulder, and Jeno huffed.

“Fine.”

Jisung didn’t take long to finish Jeno’s makeup, and turned Jeno to the mirror.

“I don’t think it’s bad. You look significantly less ugly.” Jeno gasped and put Jisung into a headlock.

“Watch it. I’m still older.” Jeno threatened him without any malice at all. He loved Jisung to death aside from all his snarky remarks. Jeno couldn’t ever hurt Jisung (that much, anyway), and Jisung knew that.

“Okay, okay. I’m sorry. But jokes aside, you really do look good. I think that boy from the kitchen will definitely think so too.”

“You mean Jaemin—I mean…w-who are you talking about? I-I don’t go into the…what’s a kitchen? Like, what even is…a boy?”

“It’s alright. I saw you with him outside earlier. His pink hair is pretty noticeable.”

Jeno blushed. “Please don’t tell anyone.”

“Yeah, no worries. It’s just…do your parents know you, uh, aren’t the straightest person out there?”

“Oh my god, Jisung. One, never do that again, and two, of course they don’t know. I’d be disowned or something. I dunno.”

“That’s fair. Now, let’s get you that outfit. I really liked that one with the golden accents…”

After Jeno was satisfied with his clothes and went off to find his parents, Jisung set off on a mission to find the pink-haired boy that had Jeno’s heart.

* * *

“Are you Jaemin?”

“Yes. Can I help you?”

“I saw you with Jeno earlier.”

Immediately, Jaemin started to panic. “Please don’t tell anyone, I really wasn’t thinking, and—”

Jisung facepalmed. “Relax. You guys are cute. Anyways, I’m Park Jisung. I’m the castle tailor and makeup artist. I basically do magic. You can think of me as the fairy god mother from Cinderella. Jeno gave me that nickname, and I’ve just grown to accept it.”

Jaemin nodded. “Okay, hello. Nice to meet you.”

Jisung clapped his hands. “Now that the pleasantries are out of the way, let me help you with the banquet tonight. You both are obviously head over heels for each other. Although, I really don’t know how that happened.”

“Actually, we met because he was hiding from his parents and tutor—”

“Yeah, whatever. I’m sure I’ll hear it at your wedding or something.”

Jisung smirked at Jaemin, who was trying to hide the flush on his cheeks.

“Follow me.”

Jisung gestured for Jaemin to follow him into his studio. Jaemin stood there awkwardly while Jisung dug through clothes, and finally pulled something out. It was a navy-blue suit with a red cape and golden embellishments. Jisung also pulled out a pair of black shoes.

“Here. Your cape will match his! Isn’t that cute?”

“Wait, is this actually all for me?”

Jisung stared incredulously at him. “Of course, it is. Who else would it be for? The maid?”

“No, it’s just that…I don’t think I can afford this. I probably shouldn’t go. He probably doesn’t even like me.”

Jisung sighed, and set down the clothes. “Listen. He turned down all the princesses in the nation, probably for you. You mean a lot more to him than you think. Trust me, I’m his best friend. Now, if you’re worried about paying for it, don’t. It’s on me.”

“Why?”

“Because I know how happy you make Jeno. Every single time when he comes to me after he’s with you, I see the largest smile on his face. Lately, I haven’t seen him like that because of his parents. And I’m really worried about him, but at the same time, I know that as long as he has you, he’ll be fine. Okay, it’s getting really mushy. I hoped that heart-to-heart really boosted your confidence because I can’t bust out another one.”

Jaemin nodded. “Yeah, it did. Thanks.”

“No problem. Now sit down, and pick a color.”

* * *

“Excuse me, may I have your attention? Prince Jeno is about to enter.”

Jeno sighed, and straightened his clothes out.

“I’ll see you later, Jeno. Have fun.”

“Thanks, Sungie.” Jeno plastered on a fake smile, and took a deep breath. It was going to be long night.

Applause rang throughout the room as he walked down the stairs. He made his way over to his parents, and sat down on his throne miserably for his parents’ speech. After what seemed like an eternity, everyone was released and the banquet finally began.

Jeno was busy stuffing his face with food when he heard his name being called.

“Jeno! Over here!”

He set his plate down and scanned the room for the voice, and saw his older brothers waving at him from the other side of the room. He quickly ran over to them, and tackled them into a hug.

“Taeyong? Doyoung? Is that really you? It’s been way too long. How are you guys?”

They winced at Jeno’s first statements. “We’ve been good. Sorry we haven’t been around much. We’ve been having some disagreements with Mother…but whatever.”

“Then why are you here?”

Doyoung scoffed. “Why wouldn’t we be here? We couldn’t miss your coming of age.”

Jeno smiled at them. “Well, I’m glad you’re here. I missed you guys.”

“We missed you too, Jeno.” Taeyong pinched his cheek.

“Now go mingle and get drunk! You’re eighteen!”

Taeyong smacked Doyoung’s shoulder. “Drink responsibly. Have fun. Now, Doyoung, that dish over there looks really good.”

They smiled at him, and Taeyong dragged Doyoung over to the banquet table. Jeno couldn’t help but grin at their antics; he really loved those guys.

“Excuse me, I’m looking for Prince Jeno. Have you seen him by any chance?”

“Actually, I’m—oh.” Jeno turned around to see Jaemin standing behind him, hands awkwardly clasped in front of him. He was dressed in a new suit, and his hair was styled up. He’d even put makeup on, and Jeno didn’t really know what to feel about that. He looked absolutely breathtaking.

“Hi.” Jaemin breathed out.

“You-you look…incredible.” Jeno immediately flushed at his forwardness.

“You look great, too.”

The two of them stood staring at each other for a good few minutes before Jeno came to his senses.

“Holy shit, wait. What are you doing here? What if someone recognizes you?”

“Don’t worry. I have a fake identity set up and everything.”

“How?”

Jaemin looked behind him. “I have connections.”

Jeno turned around to see where Jaemin was looking, and saw Jisung winking at him. Jeno had many questions, but Jaemin didn’t give him a chance to ask.

“Let’s get out of here.”

Jaemin grabbed his hand, and dragged him outside into the gardens. When Jaemin didn’t stop, Jeno got confused. “Uh, Jaemin? Where are we going?”

“We’re going to the _secret _garden. Only me and a few other servants and assistants know, since we made it.”

“Oh.”

After running through a few more patches of flowers and plants, they reached a clearing. It was filled with roses, lilies, carnations, and many other flowers that Jeno couldn’t recognize. There was only a bench, a small fountain, and a candle hanging from some metal contraption.

“Woah.”

“Yeah. It’s a little secret hideout for us when we need a break. I think you deserve to know about this.”

Jeno squeezed his shoulder. “Thanks.”

Jeno took another good look around the garden before turning back to Jaemin. “So, what have you been up to?”

Jaemin played with the edge of his sleeve. “Oh, you know, the usual. Just cooking for the banquet, cleaning, and kissing boys’ cheeks.”

“Hm, I find that hard to believe. Pretty awesome for just a boy in the kitchens.”

Jaemin playfully glared at him. “Don’t be snarky. After all, I’m the one who made all the food. I could’ve poisoned the food. Or worse, I didn’t make any chocolate cakes.”

Jeno gasped, holding a hand to his chest. “You wouldn’t.”

“Oh, but I would. I tasted the batter myself.”

Jeno tilted his head, and suddenly had an idea. “We’ll see about that.”

“How are you going to do that? Last time I checked, the cakes haven’t been—”

Jeno interrupted him by grabbing Jaemin’s hips and pulling him flush against his own body. Jaemin was frozen, so Jeno took it upon himself to tilt his chin up, before kissing Jaemin softly on the lips.

Jeno pulled away, and saw Jaemin’s bewildered eyes.

“Yeah, there aren’t any hints of chocolate. Hm, is that strawberry?”

“You…what?”

Jeno fiddled with his hands bashfully. “I really, really like you. Not in the friend way. Well, not that I don’t but I’d rather we’d be more than friends. I mean, it’s okay if you just want to—”

Jaemin rested a hand on Jeno’s cheek. “I really, really like you too.”

His eyes twinkled, and pulled Jeno closer by hooking an arm around Jeno’s neck. Jaemin pressed their foreheads together, and sent him a grin. Jeno’s breath hitched, and started laughing out of nerves. The way the moonlight hit Jaemin’s eyes made him look magical.

“You have pretty eyes.” Jeno blurted out. Jaemin started giggling, and Jeno flushed. He removed the hand from Jeno’s neck to rest it on Jeno’s cheekbone, halfway tangled into his hair.

“I like your eyes too.”

Jaemin looked into Jeno’s eyes before they drifted down to Jeno’s lips. Slowly, they started to move closer to each other before their lips met in a gentle kiss. It was innocent at first, but Jeno had him pressed against the hedges in no time. Jeno’s tongue pried open Jaemin’s lips, and Jaemin happily obliged.

Jeno disconnected their lips and started to suck on Jaemin’s neck, biting and leaving butterfly kisses all the way down to his collarbones.

“Fuck, oh my god. Okay, we-we need to stop before s-something else goes down.”

Jeno pulled away, both of them breathing heavily into each other’s shoulders. “Yeah. Good idea.”

“Holy shit. I’d never thought I’d be making out with a prince. Sixteen-year-old me could never.”

Jeno chuckled, and thoroughly looked at him. Jaemin’s lips were swollen, eyes still hooded. He probably looked similar, except his hair was probably messed up now.

“That was certainly an experience.”

“A good one, or bad one?” Jeno asked him before pulling him into another kiss.

“Definitely a good one,” Jaemin mumbled against his lips.

The two of them continued to slowly kiss, which happened to be a nice contrast from their last one.

“Keep it.” Jeno spoke into Jaemin’s hair as he held him while swaying around to the waltz music from inside.

“Keep what?”

“The strawberry. I like it.”

Jaemin lifted his head up, smiling at him, before kissing him again. Jeno couldn’t help but smile into the kiss.

Jeno definitely liked the boy in the kitchen.

**Author's Note:**

> now i seriously hope you read the note at the beginning lol  
thank you so much for reading, and i'll see you guys very soon!


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